June 9, 2015

Pittsburgh Week: The Training Centre….

Pittsburgh week wouldn’t be complete without my favorite local gym. So it’s time to get off the couch and get fit with The Training Centre! This gym is located about 2 miles from my house, so I truly have no excuses when it comes to getting to the gym. I’ve actually been a member of the Training Centre for almost 3 years now and I can honestly say it’s changed my lifestyle and really has been an integral part of my fitness and food knowledge.

Fitness History: A brief history of my fitness lifestyle includes always being active and outside at a very young age. Whether I was swimming, running around the neighborhood, or riding my bicycle, I was always doing something. I never realized the importance of an active lifestyle until I started to get older. I gained a little weight in college and started to learn more about my family health concerns such as high cholesterol and heart issues. At that point I made the decision to not live that way, although, I know some of it is genetics, but I can try to avoid any of these issues as best as I can. I completely cut out soda, began eating healthy, and started doing P90X. I saw excellent results with the program. Then life continued: work happened, life happened, and I fell off the map again with working out. {It seems to always be the first thing to go, but yet it’s SO important.} After several moves we finally are settled here in Pittsburgh and since joining The Training Centre, I honestly feel so confident that I have made fitness a lifestyle and not just a hobby!

One of the many things I love about my gym are the instructors and owner, Sharon – you’ll meet her shortly! They are all so highly motivated and knowledgeable. Their energy instantly becomes contagious and you just want to sweat and work so hard that day. I always ask a lot of questions so I can soak up their knowledge and learn, too! The staff is completely up to date on the latest in fitness trends and so willing to help you out on your fitness journey no matter what your goals are.

Meet Sharon! She is the owner, as well as a personal trainer and instructor. I would say she is definitely my go-to for most things at the gym. I love that I can ask her any question! Whether it’s if my form is correct, what to do for a specific muscle group, or customizing a workout to reach my specific goals, she is so willing to help. One of the perks of The Training Centre is that you can have Sharon measure your body, body fat, and weight as well as develop a customized program/work-out to help you obtain your goals and it’s designed specifically for you. The other bonus – it’s all included in your membership!

Back to my latest trends comment from above – you may be wondering what on Earth are these cable things? It’s TRX. A form of work out that I am completely addicted to and highly recommend for anyone!! It doesn’t matter how in shape {or out of shape} you may be in, there are ways to modify every single movement. Here is some info you can read about this unique, suspension training. Youtube is an excellent resource for learning new moves, as well.

By doing a lunge with one foot suspended, you are targeting muscles you wouldn’t necessary target by doing a normal lunge. Here I’m incorporating my abs as well as inner/outer thighs by having to keep my balance.

Another one of my “favorites”– pike ups. This is just one way to get that tummy in shape utilizing TRX.

Rows using TRX. By varying your angle, you can choose how difficult you want your workout to be. It can be made extremely difficult for you pros or extremely light for the beginners. TRX is offered as a class or you can sign up with Sharon for a personal training session.

This area of the gym is the stretch section. If nobody is around, I like to do my abs here as well! These mountain climbers with the disks are killer. Every. Single. Time.

A different way to do lunges. By now, Sharon knows I like to emphasize working my legs and glutes!

Sharon is always challenging me. She is always changing workouts and really recognizes her members’ potential and pushes them to their limits without ever overdoing it. Never in a million years did I think I would be doing push ups like ^^^^^^.

Another view of the gym. It’s the perfect size and has absolutely everything you need from high tech cardio machines to the latest in workout machines and free weights. I never feel like it’s too crowded or that anyone is judging me. We are all there to achieve our goals!

Under Armour Tanks (I have several colors- LOOOVE them!) | Lululemon Wunder Under Crop | Target Sports Bra | Under Armour Apollo Speedform Sneakers- another favorite of mine